Stop... Workout Time

Hey guys, just found this hill workout that just might do us some good as we go into some steeper workouts. Enjoy...
http://triathlon.competitor.com/2014/09/training/steal-pros-workout-jesse-thomas-strength-building-hills_106672?utm_source=iContact&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=SBR+Report+powered+by+Triathlete.com&utm_content=100114_SBRReport

St. George 70.3 Goals

Gentlemen, we had a good solid race Labor Day, but it's time to put the humidity of Austin behind us and embrace the dry heat of St. George. I've taken a good look at the times, and have tried to be realistic in my goals here. I have a goal in spending no less than 4 hours and 30 minutes out there climbing hills and think that the sooner it's over with the less I have to deal with the pain. Sounds about right, yeah? It should place in me in the top 100 overall and hopefully land me in the top five of my age group which would be pretty cool. Here's my breakdown:

1.2 Mile Swim: 28 minutes
56 Mile Bike: 2 hours 35 minutes... average a 21.7 MPH
13.1 Mile Run: 1 hour and 20 minutes... average 6:30 minute miles

The other minutes I give to transition periods and hope that I don't get a flat along the way.

Tri Apparel

Brethren, I get updates from web sites about gear that goes on sale every now and again. This morning I recieved one concerning that of tri suits. Here's the link in the case you two would like to join me amongst the ranks of onesie wearers.

http://gearup.active.com/Event.aspx?l=00011424175900000000&a=071714_TRIapparelMW-Endevr-PureFit&jb=n&cid=LLS4252&uid=5891918

As of late, I've been having a really hard time running. I seem to have slightly strianed my achilles tendon and have had to stick to swimming for the majority of my workouts. It's been tough, but I'm managing.

What's Worse?

What's worse than having to walk around the day after doing a squats and lunges workout? How about a bike ride. So I did Body Pump yesterday morning and killed the squats and lunges tracks and followed up with a 2 mile swim in the afternoon. To reward myself, I waited until this afternoon, when temps hit 95 degrees, to hit the bike. Ouch. The heart rate monitor said I could push harder, my legs disagreed. At least the tweaks I made to the bike setup improved overall comfort. So there's that. Here's what a workout looks like when my legs are on fire mile one:

Info Dump

I was on the road again lat week, so it's been a few days since my last post, and much has transpired. First, the workouts. While in Nashville I go to the local YMCA to spin in the mornings and swim in the afternoon. I got in average workouts Tues-Thursday; nothing fancy just 60 or 90 minute straight-throughs.

While I was away, a special delivery arrived for me. I am the proud new owner of a  Kestrel 4000 SL.

I found this beauty on Ebay and got a great deal. Note the carbon tubular wheels to save weight and the Adamo Breakaway saddle to save my balls. I still need to do some adjusting, especially with the aerobar setup, but I'm pumped. I went on a moderate ride this morning for 30 miles, keeping heart rate solid in zone 3 at 150 bpm +/-5 and set a new 20 mph PR on my 30 mile ride. My guess is the bike will increase average speed by about 1.5 mph; that's a time savings of about 5 minutes on the bike ride.Here's from this morning:

Missed the double

I lost my streak of double workouts but I'm okay with it. Tamara was sick this morning so there wasn't much I could do. I ended up doing a spin class, which was good from an intensity perspective. 50 minutes total and there were intervals of 4, 5, 6, and 7 minutes with 2-4 minutes of rest in between. Felt good. My weight's starting to come off and I'm hoping to hit the track next week. I've always responded really well to intervals, we'll see how it goes.

Second double

This morning I got in a 6-7 miler, but it was rough. I hadn't done anything that long in a couple weeks and it was no bueno. But that's part of getting back to fitness quickly. This afternoon I got in a quick ride. 10 min warm up, 10x1 min intervals with 1 minute rest and then 10 min cool down. Trying not to go too nuts while getting back into it.

Back from my trip

I think the best part about the trip to Alaska was no cell reception. I really enjoyed that. However, working out was tough. I worked out five of the six days but it was mostly 20-40 minute sessions and nothing impressive. To ease into it, this morning I went for an easy four miler and this afternoon I swam. I was going to go for 2K but ended up stopping at 1300 as my form was breaking down pretty badly and I didn't want to re-injure the knee. I have about 8 pounds to drop but I think I can get there reasonably quick. Hopefully I can pick back up the fitness quickly. I'm sure I'll be sore by the end of the week. Work is slow so I committed to running every morning and doing an afternoon workout at least four times.

Daily Workout - Another Solid Bike

After taking an easy day on Friday where I did some leg strength and stretching, I intended to go for that 50 miler again. I got up early, loaded up the bike, and then it started raining. Bummer. I thought all was lost, but then Christa let slip that she had a later than usual work schedule, so I decided to go on a mid-day ride. The plan was to do my usual 30 mile out and back, but add in an additional mini lap of 20 miles to make a total of 50 miles. Great plan, but poor preparation. I had 2 water bottles and a mid ride snack that I thought would be enough, but I ran out of water at mile 30, so I had to turn back home. It was a super tough ride in 90 degree weather with 12-15 mph crosswinds. All in all, I got 40 miles. Average speed of 18.1 mph and kept heart rate at 160 bpm +/- 5.

Saturday's Workout

Yesterday was a good workout. It had been a while since I had put in a good distance run, and so I let the bike ride go so I could have the energy to do it. I went to the YMCA and did a mile swim (36 laps) in just under 30 minutes. Right after I headed out on a trail (nice and flat) for a 14.2 mile run, which I did in 105 minutes. That would make an average of somewhere around 7:25 mile splits. So not fast, but a good pace for me during a good distance run.
I learned a lesson along the way. Swimming takes off any deoderant you were previously wearing and can cause quite the rash around the armpit area as a result. Just a heads up in case you ever want to do something similar.

Daily Workout - Bike Breakthrough

Very solid ride yesterday evening, setting a new PR of 19.5 mph on my regular 30 mile ride, and had some moderate cross winds to boot, so I'm feeling good about my biking.

Another Day of Lactic Acid

This morning, the head coach and I were the only ones who showed for practice. It's understandable, it's in between the two summer semesters and it's 6:30 in the morning. We decided to do a run that we wanted to do. There's this lovely run (trail 396) here in Prescott that is single track, pretty windy, and rolls through pine trees in the mountains that passes one of Prescott's lakes. It's a 4.5 mile (about) as a there and back which we did in 77 minutes (about 8:30 minute miles, but it's rather rocky and a lot of elevation change happens along the way.)
To go along with that, I just got back from a 75 minute swim in the pool. I don't know about the rest of you guys, but the idea that I swam for just about as long as I ran is rather unsettling. The swim kinda hurt from last night's activities, but I managed.

Daily Workouts

Every night I set my alarm for 4:45am and set out all my clothes so I can go to a 5:20am class at the Y. Spin class Monday Wednesday, weights Tuesday Thursday. Four out of five mornings I wake up, turn off the alarm and come up with an excuse to go back to bed. Given all the practice, I've become very convincing, especially after staying up late the night before watching Game of Thrones. So when I slept in Tuesday I simply convinced myself I would take a ride in the evening without realize Lexi had gymnastics and I had fatherly responsibilities. So instead of solid double day, I was only able to spin on my trainer for about 45 minutes yesterday.

Miraculously I made the 5:20am class today, and if there is a best day to go, it is Wednesday. We do a short spin class (35 minutes instead of 50) followed by a 30 minute core workout. The spin class is great for high intensity interval work thanks to the motivational instructor, and the core workout gets me to focus on oft neglected abs, obliques, glutes, etc.

Special bonus today was my first 45 minute PT session. The therapist did an evaluation and essentially told me I have chicken legs and need to strengthen them with squats and lunges and told me to stretch my quads, hamstrings, and IT bands. Also suggested waiting 4 more weeks before running again.

Swimming for a Future Shave

I've envied Danasty for the past day and his hairless swimming experience. I've only shaved twice for running, but got to go swimming after the second shave and have been dreaming of that feeling for years. No homo, but we really ought to do a quick shave fest in the hotel the night before our big event. It'll be a good bonding opportunity where blood will most likely be spilt, we don't have to worry about Matt's drains being clogged, and we just might race faster.
In other news, I just got back from a good swim workout. in the middle of a solid warm-up and a crappy cool-down, I did two 1000 at a pace around 47. It was a fast pace for me but was a good progress point as well.

A Shave and a Swim

Few things are as invigorating as a swim after shaving. I'm not talking about trimming up a 5 o'clock shadow, I'm talking about a full body shave. In high school, we use to do a full body, head to toe shave (except what the speedo covers) once a year for finals. Jumping in the pool the day after a shave feels like you're oiled up and just slipping though the water. So I shaved my head this evening and did some additional manscaping before heading off to the Y. I was planning on a 90 minute swim, but I got in the water at 7:20, so I decided to keep going until they shut the place down at 9. So total workout was 1h40m, about 3.5 miles straight through. All that was missing was a skin tight speedo and a swim cap to take me back to 1999...

Two Days Too Many

Sorry for my lack of posting, it's been quite a busy week. I'll talk about what I've done for the past two days - Friday and Saturday. Friday started with a good 9 mile run with about the last 3/4 of a mile really turning up the heat. Later that evening, I took a good 70 minute swim in the pool which made for a solid sleep. I decided to go for a bike ride with the cross-country coach Saturday morning. Had I not promised somebody I'd go out with them for a ride at 6:00 AM, I would have not gotten up; my upper-body muscles were sore! But we started off on a 60-miler, of which I was hoping I could finally hit my goal of averaging 20 mph, my closest being 19.7. We were making great time, but on the way back the headwinds started to stir which sucked because on the way out it was rather calm and I was hoping to hit this goal. So, we broke wind for each other for about 20 miles, but then it just got too much, we were both dehydrated, and had nothing left. So close! So around two, to make it in time for some ward activity, I swam for just half an hour to have my body continue to get the flow of swimming. I am one sore child this morning. Happy Sabbath!

Disappointing Daily Workout

I had big plans for my ride this morning, but reality and fate intervened and spoiled it all. So yesterday I had a light swim of 2 miles straight through in 60 minutes. Woke up early this morning and drove 10 minutes to Parker and 1431 for what should have been a 50 miler. Instead I got 2 flat tires, with only one spare in my saddlebag. Ended up having to stop every 5-6 miles on the return trip to fill the front tire with more air. Bit of a bummer, but I'll go again next Saturday. Here's the Endomondo screenshot:

The Double Deuce

Ran 7 miles this morning. Probably averaged around 7:30. I haven't felt well physically for a couple weeks. I now think it's because of my lack of running from the knee. Normally I wouldn't post this but since no one else reads the blog it's cool. I dropped a deuce during the run and another after the run. Felt tons better. I don't know how Matt holds it in for days on end. Didn't get a second run in today because we were out later than expected with friends. Running and swimming tomorrow.

Daily Workout - Bike

Got up early this morning and set out on my regular 30 mile ride. No headwinds today, just some mild cross breeze, so I pushed at race pace. Kept heart rate at 160-165 bpm. Average rate was a new PR of 19.0 mph, my goal is to get that to 20 mph for the September race. Here's the Endomondo screenshot:

MIA

I've been MIA and have no excuse. So, let me give a quick recap of last week and this week to date. Last week a couple things of note happened. First, I did a 50 mile bike ride (back and forth to chateau Hall) and it killed my legs for several days. I bit off way more than I was ready for and didn't properly take nutrients. Second, I started getting a pain in my knee. It killed when I ran but was okay when I was around. Turns out it was due to kicking to hard while bending at the knee with my swim. Now I'm working on that. Yesterday was a pool workout. Did a 300m warm up and planned on doing 10x100 on the 2 min. Got interrupted after my third set by the swim team and had to cut it short. Felt good to be back in the pool. The knee was a bit soar so I went on the elliptical for 30 min and then the bike for 15. Totally exhausted after not sleeping last night. Tomorrow I'm up early to run and hoping to get in another run in the evening.

Travel Workouts

I'm in Nashville this week, so had to modify my workout routine a little. Got in late Monday, so Tuesday morning I went to the local YMCA and rode a bike. Caught the last 20 minutes of a spin class then did 70 more minutes solo. Targeted 90 rmp pace at 140 bpm heart rate. Tuesday night went back for a 90 minute, 3 mile swim. Hit the full 60 minute spin class Wednesdaymorning. Should be home tonight and back on schedule tomorrow. I like a long bike ride the morning after a trip to get back in rhythm.

Today's Work

Starting off the new week. Got with the cross-country guys this morning. A little background though. Due to NAIA rules, we can only officially work-out so many weeks in the year, so practice right now isn't mandatory and guys who run by themselves think they push themselves hard enough so they don't have to get up early. This morning, one of those guys showed up. So we wen't on a rolling trail run, and the trail absolutely rocked him. So we went for 70 minutes, but the pace was really slow. So this evening, at the pool, I thought something fast and hard - for me -  would be appropriate so the day wasn't a waste. After a 10 minute warm-up, I chose to 6X200m. at a three-minute pace with a minute rest inbetween. So, it really was like 3 min "on" 1 min "off." I kept the 45 sec. lap pace with the last two sets being really tough to hold. Oh, and I took a three-minute break after set 3 instead of 1 minute. It was tough, for me, and I was beat afterwards during my 5 minute cool down. Good day.

Daily workout

Short swim workout this morning. 500 warm-up then timed 1500M (66 lengths in my 25 yard pool). Finished in 23:15. Wrapped up with 15 minutes stroke work and 10 minutes stretching in the hot tub. I'll probably setup the stationary trainer and spin for an hour this evening after the girls are down.

Daily Workout

Went on bike ride this morning, my usual out and back 30 mile ride. Hit some nasty head winds coming back, so the splits weren't what I hoped. Also, downloaded the Endomondo app, really like the audio updates, and took this screenshot on my phone of the workout summary. Pretty handy.

Suit up!

So having just caught-up on Danasty's last post about his swimming times, this might not as impressive to him, but today's swim workout was a great mental milestone. First off, I have a personal goal to go below 26 minutes in the swim portion of the triathlon. It's a big goal for me, and I've been working hard at it for the past month. After a good 15 minute warm-up, I started on my 1500 m. swim with a goal of going 25 minutes. The first lap was 45 sec. and the rest were 50 right on the dot. It was good for me becuase I proved to my body that I'm capable of physically swimming the time, and I didn't even feel drained at the end of it. And it was also after a good 80 minute run with the cross-country team this morning. Nothing intense, just a good pace through rolling trails in the mountains as we continue to build our base.

On another high note, I got a sweet package in the mail today. About a week ago, I found a 70% discount on Xterra swimsuits, and felt that a Vector Pro was a reasonable thought for the discount. I also had the comforting thought I would much rather put money into doing triathlons than looking forward to a newer car, eating out (which hasn't been for a while due to clean eating at home,) or dating (which really isn't much of an option out here anyways.) Life is good, gentlemen, and I'm looking forward to our races.

Open Water Swims

Dedicated to Krafty Single, who panicked and did the backstroke in his first swim.

The doc has me on one more day of rest for my bum knee, so I had a light swim workout and found myself with a great chance to focus on open water swimming technique. 45 minutes, about 2700 yards, doing a 4 length rotation of (1)forward spot (2)normal swim (3)blind swim (4)normal swim, all at about a 1:40 minute pace on 100 yards.

For me, there are three main challenges with open water swimming:

1. You can't see where you're going when you breathe on the side
2. You can't see if you're going straight with your face in the water
3. Water gets choppy swimming with 500 of your closest competitors/frenemies

Here's how I practice for open water swims when I'm at the YMCA:

1. Navigation is an afterthought in a lap pool - you have the big black line below you, a big black cross on the wall to swim towards, lane lines 2-3 feet away on each side, and the ability to see from one end of the pool to the other. Open water swims are typically marked with big floating buoys, each separate by 100 meters of water with 5-10 feet of visibility - no chance of spotting the next buoy underwater. So many swimmers will take a few breaths on the side, and then a few breathes in front while free-styling, or even breast stroke a few seconds to spot, re-orient, and course correct. When you breathe in front, your feet drop and it takes a good effort to get yourself level and swimming again, only to repeat the process again every 15-30 seconds. Instead, I try to spot forward without taking a breath. Here's the short explanation... I usually try to breathe every 3 strokes (breathe on the right, stroke, stroke, stroke, breathe on the left, repeat), and breathe every 2 strokes (breathe right, stroke, stroke, breathe right, repeat) when I'm really pushing it. When I start a distance swim race I force myself to breathe every 3 strokes as a method of pace control, and that happens to lend itself well to spotting forward. Essentially, I breathe left, stroke, bring my head up mid second stroke to spot, stroke, and breathe right. When I bring my head up, I look straight ahead and lift only high enough for my eyes to break the water, but not my nose or mouth. I use my stroking arm to help lift my head, and then tuck back in before I have to roll and breath to the side. This helps keep my body level in the water (feet don't sink) and maintain a good rhythm.
2. With your face in the murky water, you are essentially blind. When swimming in a lap pool, we all are constantly course correcting without even knowing it. I am always surprised how off-course I can get in 20-30 seconds out in the open water. To practice swimming in a straight, balanced line, I'll do "blind" lengths. When I push off the wall I streamline for 2-3 seconds to set myself straight, then close my eyes and keep them closed for 15 strokes (one length typically takes me 18 strokes) and see how far I drift off. I find that the biggest drift factor is which side I'm breathing on (another reason to alternate breathing sides). This exercise makes me consciously practice balanced swimming.
3. Not a whole you can do about choppy water practice, but today I had an unexpected workout bonus: the really fat dudes in the lane to my left and the high school swim team in the 5 lanes to my right. Plenty of chances to catch a face full of water mid-breath, especially doing blind laps.

Workout Apps

Do you guys use an app to track your workouts? I've been using RunKeeper for bikes and runs and like it quite a bit. It gives regular updates during the workout with speed, time, and distance stats, and then some cool summary reporting when the workout is complete. Only downside is the app doesn't share workouts well. Would be nice to post a link or a screenshot of the summary. Any suggestions? I'm going to poke around and see what's out there.

Sissyville

Sounds like we're a bunch of sissies. Peter is whining about some little ab workout, and my doc tells me to suck it up. MRI follow up this morning; negative MRI, save for a little patellar tendonosis. Got a scrip for some anti-inflammatory and  instructions to strengthen my legs - no one likes to hear they have chicken legs. Also got a joint injection with some feel good drugs! Doc says I have to rest, so good thing I got in some workouts before.

I did a 60 minute  BodyPump class last night, which left me completely sore (it's been a while since I lifted), and then followed up this morning with a short, easy bike. 18 miles, keeping heart rate below 150, focusing on maintaining cadence (target 90 rpm) and pedal mechanics in the aero position.

One Sore Life

Gentlemen, the last two days have had a bit of cause for some soreness. A bit of history, last Monday's FHE activity consisted of capture the flag and I was barefoot. It didn't end well, and I had to take the week off. But yesterday I was back at it. Went for a really good hill workout (1,200 ft. elevation climb) for about an hour and decided an ab workout afterwards was necessary - it wasn't. Today was an easy recovery run for an hour and then I was at it in the pool this afternoon. After a good warm-up, I did 4 500 m. repeats keeping at 50 secs. per lap (back and forth.) I'm finally starting to feel almost good in the water.

Daily Workout

Put in a good swim today. 80 minutes, about 3 miles straight through. Also had my MRI this morning; depending on the prognosis, I may have lots more swim workouts in my future.

First Things First

I was going to start off with a list of my goals for the Sept. 1 race in Austin, and with my reasoning and explanations, but it's a lot easier just to just post the image I have taped to my mirror. Game on.